the flesh of a Tang Dynasty monk 唐僧肉

Something much-coveted, or "the flesh of a Tang Dynasty monk", refers to a big bonus or benefit that is pursued at any cost. In an article published by the Communist Party of China's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection on its website on Monday, the top discipline watchdog pointed out, that because of loose supervision, the officials managing some State-owned enterprises regard the companies as such "monk flesh".

倍受觊觎的事物或“唐僧肉”指不惜任何代价想要获得的巨大好处和利益。中央纪委监察部3日在其网站上刊登的一篇文章指出，由于监管松散，国有企业的管理人员都把国有资产看做“唐僧肉”。

唐僧肉，按照字面意思可表达为the flesh of a Tang Dynasty monk，意译为something much-coveted。在小说《西游记》（Journey to the West）中，唐僧肉被认为食用后可以长生不老（the monk' s flesh will make the eater immortal），故被各种妖怪垂涎，由此引申为可以带来巨大好处和利益，因而受到众人追捧，甚至不惜一切代价取得的事物。